Pre-E3 2004: The DS is Great!

Nintendo touts publisher and developer praise for the upcoming handheld.

By Craig Harris

Nintendo of America issued a release today that reports on the industry interest of the upcoming dual-screen handheld videogame system, codenamed Nintendo DS.

According to the company, Nintendo has signed more than 100 companies worldwide for software development on the Nintendo DS, including THQ, Electronic Arts, Activision, Atari, Ubisoft, Majesco, Capcom, Sega, Konami, Hudson Soft, Namco, Bandai, Koei and Square Enix.

"Nintendo DS is going to push hand-held technology to uncharted territories," says Yves Blehaut, senior vice president of Atari. "It's going to energize both developers and consumers with amazing new game mechanics and new game design. Once more, Nintendo leads the way with something unexpected and totally innovative."

"The Nintendo dual screen is something that we're really excited about developing for," says Nick Earl, vice president and general manager of Electronic Arts. "It's very innovative, which is classic Nintendo."

"It's exciting to see so many publishers are as inspired about the Nintendo DS as we are," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "The creative contributions of the publishers will reinforce Nintendo's reputation as the industry's leader in innovation."

The Nintendo DS will make its debut at the Electronic Entertainment Expo next week, and will be a big part of Nintendo's pre-show presentation on Tuesday morning. We'll have all the goods then.